Butler Bulldogs @ Georgetown Hoyas GameThread, Dec 8, 2009 7:00 PM EST

#22 Butler Bulldogs (6-2) vs. #15 Georgetown Hoyas (6-0)

by Hire Esherick on Dec 8, 2009 9:00 AM EST in Game Threads

Butler Bulldogs at Georgetown Hoyas, Dec 8, 2009 7:00 PM EST

Quick Link to In-Game Commentary: Online / Mobile

TV: ESPN
Radio: ESPN 980
Online: Bulldogs vs Hoyas coverage
Time: 7:00 PM EST
Location: Madison Square Garden, New York, NY

View from the Student Section - A Perspective from Campus:

Please don't get embarrassed on national television. Please don't get embarrassed on national television. Please don't get embarrassed on national television. Please don't get embarrassed on national television. Please don't get embarrassed on national television. Please don't get embarrassed on national television. Please don't get embarrassed on national television. Please don't get embarrassed on national television.

View from the Court Side Seats - A Perspective from OldHoya:

Not much history for Gtown and Butler but there's one thing that makes this worthwhile and that's playing at MSG - an arena OldHoya has frequented for many years now. There have been tremendous highs, including Big East championships and miserable lows, including last year's St. John's debacles and Ray Allen's lucky shot that cost Georgetown a #1 seed in the Dance.

For those attending the game, OldHoya suggests you get a Garden hot dog.

View from the Sportsbook (via DonBest) - A Perspective from Vegas:

After avoiding having to post a line on the Hoyas ever since its less than impressive showing against Temple, Vegas has no choice but to throw something at us in this nationally televised affair in The World's Most Famous Arena.

Georgetown has been installed as a 3 point favorite, a line that will likely draw some fast money on the Hoyas because Joe Gambler will see Big East v. Horizon League and take the favored unbeaten nationally ranked powerhouse.

I still don't think Georgetown has shown enough yet to convince me that they can beat a disciplined top 25 team that makes its living from behind the arc. Butler's initial top 10 ranking may have been inflated, but their two losses have come at the hands of Minnesota and Clemson--not exactly cupcake city. If the Butler threes starting raining down and the Hoyas continue to struggle to impose its significant height advantage down low, this could be a squeaker. But on the MSG stage after the debacles against St. John's last season, I think this is going to be the game that Monroe begins to assert himself and removes the large postage stamp that's been on his forehead. Anything less than 18 and 9 will be an underwhelming performance.

I think the Hoyas will win this game, and the pick is Georgetown -3 in a low-scoring affair, something like 64-59. The over/under is 126 and I'm going UNDER. 3 points can be a sizable hurdle to cover especially since the game could in theory be over with the Hoyas up 5 with 5 seconds left and then some white devil from Indiana drains a meaningless 3 right into your eye and through your heart. That kind of stuff happens all the time.

Don't give up, don't ever give up.

On the season:

The Hoyas are currently 1-1 ATS (that's 'Against The Spread' for those just tuning in).

Georgetown is 1-0 ATS on the road and 0-1 ATS at Verizon.

Casual Hoya is 2-0 ATS, 1-1 in Over/Unders.

www.casualhoya.com : Where Your Money Stays And Plays.

Casually.

Check back throughout the day for updated media coverage and during the game for updates.

Poll

Put your money where your mouth is

Georgetown and the Over

25 votes

Georgetown and the Under

26 votes

Butler and the Over

4 votes

Butler and the Under

10 votes

65 votes | Poll has closed

0 recs | 115 comments

Comments

From Indy Star

Gary Parrish, CBS Sportsline:
“The UCLA win doesn’t help at all, and the losses to Minnesota and Clemson look worse now than they did when they happened. So for the sake of the Top 25, absolutely, Butler needs to get past Georgetown and Ohio State, particularly now that Evan Turner is out. Anything less than that, and the Bulldogs won’t have much to fall back on when they inevitably lose a Horizon game or two, at which point the chances of an at-large bid will decrease, and the odds of getting a good seed will be small. So this is a huge week for Butler basketball. Fair or not, because of the league affiliation, now is when the Bulldogs must show the nation, the AP voters and the NCAA tournament selection committee what they are. We’ll see how it goes.”
Mike DeCourcy, The Sporting News columnist:
“I think these are very important games, and victories essentially could force the selection committee to treat the Bulldogs better than in 2008, for instance. But there’s a lot of achievement that would have to be stacked on top of those wins. Xavier hasn’t played well yet, but it may be just as talented as Ohio State and Georgetown. And Butler still has to dominate the Horizon League in order for seedings to be an issue. But these games are opportunities, and getting to play them without having to be the visiting team is rare for a team in Butler’s circumstance.”
Joe Lunardi, ESPN bracketologist:
“I think it’s premature to ‘seal the fate’ of any team at this point, Butler included. Certainly the Bulldogs could breathe a lot easier by winning at least half of their remaining non-conference games. However, suppose Minnesota (No. 56 today) and/or Clemson (No. 93) finish in the top third of their league(s)? Neither circumstance would be unexpected and either would turn Butler’s results against them into a ‘good loss.’ UAB (probably) and Xavier (for sure) are also likely to climb, so those are significant opportunities. And, last year, Butler played a 25-7 team in its Bracket Buster game (yet another opportunity for a legitimate ‘scalp’). This is the quantitative part of the process. Qualitatively, if Butler posts an expected record in league play (say, no more than one or two losses), I think the consensus will remain that this is an NCAA-level basketball team. Maybe not the 3-4 seed that many were assuming, but certainly well within the range for positive at-large consideration. My ‘tournament odds’ program doesn’t crank up until January, but this team is still far more likely to be in the field than not.”

Casual Hoya

#22 Butler Bulldogs (6-2) vs. #15 Georgetown Hoyas (6-0)

Butler Bulldogs at Georgetown Hoyas, Dec 8, 2009 7:00 PM EST

Put your money where your mouth is

Georgetown and the Over

Georgetown and the Under

Butler and the Over

Butler and the Under

Comments

From Indy Star

There are no Cinderallas

imagine the nerve of georgetown

Optimism

Georgetown giving points

PRACTICE

Butler and the OVER

early loss is good

underwhelming

Yeah, I can't put my finger on it

View from the Student Section

wanna see jaded?

We win because...

Will be there tonight

out of all

Butler

Courtside tweet

Gordon Hayward

20 percent

cahill is the ref

vaughn > monroe

clark > monroe

well this sucks

Clark stepped out

clark = iverson?

more turnovers than field goals

thanks

in other news

good sign

Jason Clark went to O'Connell when I was there

if we combine monroe and vaughn

OFFENSIVE REBOUNDS!!!

come on

nice layup butler

endowment

how the debris duo?

what the hell was that foul

WHY THE HELL ARE WE PLAYING ZONE?

why not fall for another headfake?

i got an idea!

dickie V

perty

when was the last time john cahill ever gave us a call

awesome

vee

NO NIKITA

Monroe

guess thats what happens

by far

pool

jay bilas wants to cut ncaa basketball teams

Who the hell is on this?

this is very important

lottery

Greg looks older than their coach

dare i say

econ baby

IDIOT THREES!

guess who called that bs foul

guess who called the bs possession

tempo

monroe>freeman>clark>vaughn>nikita>wright

FREEMAN!

emotion??

corner pocket

ASS

corner pocket

Billiards kid

ROB!

word

who comes off the bench first?